Easy nutrition-packed healthy smoothie

 I love to get creative with my blender and love smoothies. They are a quick and easy way to get nutrition. I like to experiment and to be honest i often don't follow set recipes or and if i do i always like to tweak them a little bit. 

A popular smoothie that i often make for my family is my 'banana, mango high nutrition shake'

Ingredients:

Bananas            Milk (substitute with powder milk, Almond/Soya/Oat)

Mango pulp        Water        Almonds (ground)    Dates

Flax Seeds (ground)        Chai seeds (ground)    Poppy seeds (ground) 

Pinch of Himalayan Pink Salt     Oats (ground)    nutmeg    Cinnamon

Honey (optional)

Preparation:

Blend together the dry ingredients - Oats, Almonds, Dates, Flax Seeds, Chai Seeds, Poppy Seeds. Add a pinch of salt and honey if using.

You can choose a selection of your preferred seeds/nuts.

Next i chop the bananas and remove the seeds from the dates.

Now we're ready to blend our ingredients. I use 1:3 water to milk ratio. 

To make sure the dry ingredients are blended as smooth as possible i give them a few extra blitzes in the blender with a little bit of liquid.

 

Once that's done you can add your bananas, mango pulp, milk and water and blend together. Chill in the fridge before serving. 

And that's it..quick and easy and tasty too. 

Variations:

Replace or add the fruit with pineapple, apple, pear, strawberry etc (whichever are your favourites)

Replace the oats with bran. Substitute the dates with other dried fruit (cranberries, raisins, sultanas etc)

Use alternative seeds - Sunflower, pumpkin etc

And any milk alternative or just use water. 

You don't have to add nutmeg or cinnamon or salt but they not only add to the great flavour but also have nutritional benefits. 

Nutritional benefits

Bananas- at least 11 scientifically proven benefits, including great nutrients and antioxidants (Potassium, Vitamin B6 + A, Carbohydrate, natural sugars, high in fibre, Iron and more ) 

They are good for balancing blood sugar levels, soothing the digestive system, protects against heart disease, aids weight loss 

Mangoes along with bananas are in the top 20 healthiest fruits on our planet. They are packed with nutrients and antioxidants including vitamin C & A. Pectin, Prebiotic Fibre, beta-carotene and others. They help with controlling cholesterol levels and also good for your skin. They boost your immunity system and are good for overall eye health. So they are not only jus juicy and scrumptious but have lots of health benefits. 

Oats are incredibly they are one of the most nutritious whole grain foods, rich in antioxidants, containing a powerful soluble fibre and very filling with slow releasing energy. There are many health benefits to consuming oats including lowering cholesterol levels, reducing the risk of colorectal cancer, a great source for protein and carbohydrate and can enhance your physical performance.  

Seeds/Nuts Seeds and nuts are a good source of protein, healthy fats, fibres and vitamins/minerals. The seeds that i put in my shake/smoothie are super healthy. There are also Hemp seeds, Sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds that you can add to your drink. 

Nutmeg and Cinnamon not just for flavour. Nutmeg is good for your indigestion, detoxifies the body, increases immunity, helps with sleep, is good for your skin and can strengthen cognitive function. As for Cinnamon it has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties. It is full of powerful antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory properties. 

These are just some of the health benefits of the ingredients in this smoothie.

Facing the Fear

Today i am covering the subject of 'avoidance & facing fear'. Having worked with many individuals suffering with mental health issues i have learned a lot of techniques that have helped them overcome many obstacles.

A definition of  fear:-

fear

/ˈfir/

noun

• 1.an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat:"he is prey to irrational fears"synonymsterror, fright, fearfulness, horror, alarm, ... moreantonymscalmness, confidence

Alex Niles in 'Psychology Today' describes fear as "an emotional response induced by a perceived threat that causes a change in brain and organ function, as well as in behaviour."

To cope with fear we need to be able to:

1. firstly face up to it (Acknowledgement),
2. secondly understand it (what has caused it and how it manifests itself)
3. and lastly overcome it (manage & control)  

SO how can we do 1 and 2 in order to achieve 3??

Firsty, we need to understand that with fear often comes avoidance, whether it be of people, situations or places. This in turn causes anxiety and fear.

Avoidance is an important concept to help us understand why our anxiety is maintained and increases.  eventually we end up thinking that the only way i can cope with these situations is to avoid them. 

We need to face the fear through stages one step at a time.

1. Setting targets:- identifying the situations that are avoided and/or cause anxiety (be specific and detailed). Start with the easiest tht you are most likely to tackle initially. 
2. Grade these tasks/targets:- break each one (starting with the easiest) down into smaller specific tasks, increasing in difficulty. Be confident in your prospect of achieving this. Use coping skills that you have used before to tackle this.
3. Practice:- Taking each task one at a time, using your coping skills,  practice these tasks until it is no longer difficult for you to do. It is perfectly natural to experience some anxiety whilst doing this but your confidence will grow as long as you practice often and regularly. Daily if possible. 

Resources:

• Working Minds UK: https://www.working-minds.org.uk/documents/graded-exposure.pdf
• Very Well Mind: https://www.verywellmind.com/practice-social-anxiety-disorder-exposure-therapy-3024845
• OCD UK: https://www.ocduk.org/overcoming-ocd/accessing-ocd-treatment/exposure-response-prevention/